1st Class PM, 2nd Class Government, 3rd Class Civil Service

The NST's tagline, "Held Up by Bloopers" (5th Jan 2007), that PM Badawi's excellent plans for the country is thwarted by poor implementation does not bring relief to the man on the street.

Batu Pahat MP, Dr. Junaidy stated that he “hoped executing agencies such as government bodies and civil servants will take the trouble to understand Abdullah’s aspirations for the country and would assist him in implementing the policies”. Come on, are we pushing the buck to our “world class” civil service here? Are we saying that should the PM’s “first class plan” fail because of “third class execution”, then it is not the PM’s ultimate responsibility but our civil servants’?

Lets take an analogy with Malaysia as a corporation, PM Badawi as the CEO, the Cabinet the Board of Directors, and Malaysians as the shareholders.

The CEO has the duty to lay out a vision and long-term plans for the company. His vision’s ultimate goal is create enhanced value for all stakeholders - the employees (the civil service) and the shareholders (the public).

The next crucial step is convincing the rank and file, i.e. his employees, of the critical need to turn his vision into reality. It is relatively easy to formulate a grand strategy, adorned with big words, big goals, grand potential rewards. The devil is in the details. The dirty work is getting it done. Afterall, a good plan implemented today is better than a perfect plan implemented tomorrow.

The CEO cannot expect employees to have the initiative to fully grasp the specifics of his vision. He has to walk the talk - go to the ground to explain his plans, let them understand why his vision is vital to the company’s survival, and make it very clear that it is in everyone’s interest to make his vision a reality. His employees (the civil service!) must be convinced that failure to execute his plan will mean “heads will roll” (including perhaps the CEO’s); successful execution leading to the desired results means better bonus for everyone. Communication of the vision, in this case, must be top-down.

Should the CEO’s words fail to be translated into concrete action and results within a reasonable period of time, the first “head to roll” is rightfully the CEO’s. He wields the greatest executive powers to get things DONE. Should the CEO hide behind his employees’ incompetence with the excuse that he was let down by poor managers, it is likely shareholders will soon vote him out of office, and next the Board. Rightfully so too, since the CEO fail to manage his managers.

Hence, PM Badawi should take heed. We know for years that our civil service is stifled by unnecessary red tape, held down by inefficiency and probably run by bureaucrats who are unqualified and unmotivated to serve the people. But we did not vote this people in. We voted for the PM (well, indirectly). If PM Badawi wants to be remembered as a great PM, he has the opportunity to do so by translating words into results. We do not want a situation where we have a “1st Class PM; 2nd Class Government; 3rd Class Civil Service”.